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JOHN WOODS \/ THE CANADIAN PRESS<\/p>\n
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Calgary Flames’ Connor Zary knocks down his own rebound off Winnipeg Jets goaltender Eric Comrie during the second perio in Winnipeg on Friday.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\u201cThose things can build sometimes if you start forcing it and grip it a little tight,\u201d Toews said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe just sat on the bench and in the locker room to keep pushing it and it was going to come. It shows a lot of maturity and it doesn\u2019t matter who you\u2019re playing or where they are in the standings. The league is so good now that you can\u2019t take anyone for granted, and we knew that they were going to play some desperate hockey. We had to work for those two points.\u201d<\/p>\n
Just as they did Monday night in Calgary, the Flames showed plenty of fight against the Jets. Ultimately, it led to the same result. They are now an NHL-worst 1-7-1 on the year.<\/p>\n
Wicked week<\/p>\n
It\u2019s been quite a week for Toews.<\/p>\n
The 37-year-old sparked his team\u2019s comeback victory on Monday night in Calgary, tipping home a Neal Pionk point shot for his first goal in 921 days.<\/p>\n
Toews only had to wait four days to light the lamp again. He showed great hand-eye co-ordination by deflecting a Morrissey pass early in the second period on Friday, giving Winnipeg fans their first chance to cheer a goal by the local legend.<\/p>\n
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t JOHN WOODS \/ THE CANADIAN PRESS<\/p>\n Jonathan Toews tapped the puck past Calgary goalie Dustin Wolf in the second period to score his first goal in his hometown as a member of the Winnipeg Jets.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a lot of fun playing in this building,\u201d said Toews. \u201cI always loved coming here in the past (with the Chicago Blackhawks) and it was always great energy. There are no better hockey fans in the world. It\u2019s nice to be on the right side now and to score a goal and hear the crowd. It definitely gives you some jump out there.\u201d<\/p>\n It wasn\u2019t without some controversy. The Flames challenged for goaltender interference, believing Toews\u2019 skate might have grazed the pad of Dustin Wolf. However, the league upheld the ruling after a quick review, causing another fan eruption, which essentially served as a curtain call.<\/p>\n \u201cI didn\u2019t feel too good about it once they were challenging. I haven\u2019t had too many of those go my way in the past,\u201d said Toews. \u201cBut it was nice to get that one. I didn\u2019t feel like I interfered, but I haven\u2019t seen the replay, but it was good to have that one count.\u201d<\/p>\n Toews continued to show dominance in the faceoff circle, winning 13 of 15. Now up to five points in eight games, he\u2019s been everything the Jets could have hoped for \u2014 and then some.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Vilardi\u2019s lament<\/p>\n There was no sign of a monkey on his back when Vilardi met with the media Friday morning, fielding questions about the fact he had yet to score a goal through seven games.<\/p>\n \u201cWhether that\u2019s luck or just bearing down and being more deadly with your chances, I think it\u2019s a little bit of both,\u201d Vilardi admitted. \u201cIt is very frustrating, I\u2019m not going to lie and say that it\u2019s not.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t JOHN WOODS \/ THE CANADIAN PRESS<\/p>\n Calgary goaltender Dustin Wolf saves a shot from Gabriel Vilardi during the second period.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n Sure, the team was still enjoying overall success, and yes, linemates Mark Scheifele and Kyle Connor were generating plenty of offence. Vilardi, coming off a career-high 27 goals in 71 games last year, wasn\u2019t satisfied.<\/p>\n \u201cI think if I could score those guys would have 20 points apiece right now,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s been frustrating, but at the end of the day when you\u2019re getting chances it\u2019s tough to be overly critical and concerned.\u201d<\/p>\n Vilardi\u2019s patience was rewarded in a big way a few hours later. With the Jets on a power play midway through the second period, he took a feed from Scheifele and flicked a backhander past Wolf to give the Jets a 3-1 lead. He let out a visceral scream and jumped into the glass \u2014 a rare show of emotion from a guy who is usually cool as a cucumber.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a huge weight off his shoulders. It really was, you could see\u201d said Arniel. \u201cNow he\u2019s got a big smile from ear to ear. I\u2019m glad for him and glad to see him get that (goal). Now he can get off and running.\u201d<\/p>\n Later in the middle frame, Vilardi showed how dangerous he can be as a net-front presence as he calmly took the puck and, with a spinning backhand pass, found a wide-open Alex Iafallo, who ripped home the shot to make it 4-2.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Helper hat trick<\/p>\n Morrissey clearly loves playing his hometown team. The Calgary native had a huge helper on Monday to set up Scheifele\u2019s game-winning goal late in the third period. He added three more in this one against the Flames.<\/p>\n The first one was the best one, with Morrissey undressing Calgary defenceman Jake Bean and then feeding Connor for a perfect one-timer early in the second period to erase a 1-o deficit and spark a four-goal frame for the Jets.<\/p>\n \u201cA four-on-four situation, there was obviously a lot of open ice. Just tried to use my skating,\u201d Morrissey said of the razzle dazzle that was on display. \u201cWhen you get on a two-on-one with a goal scorer like that, it\u2019s nice to put the puck in his hands. Usually, he\u2019s pretty lethal from there.\u201d<\/p>\n We suspect Doug Armstrong, the general manager of the Canadian Olympic Team, who was on hand to do some scouting, enjoyed what he saw. Morrissey is a shoo-in to make the roster, which will be finalized at the end of December, and it\u2019s games like this that show why. Scheifele, who is on the radar to make it, also had a nice game and chipped in with two assists.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Key play<\/p>\n Iafallo\u2019s goal with 70 seconds left in the second period restored Winnipeg\u2019s two-goal lead and proved to be the game-winner.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Three stars<\/p>\n Jets D Morrissey: 3A \u00a0<\/p>\n Extra, extra<\/p>\n \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t JOHN WOODS \/ THE CANADIAN PRESS<\/p>\n Logan Stanley dropped the gloves with the Flames\u2019 Adam Klapka, who is an inch taller than the Jets\u2019 towering blue-liner.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n Logan Stanley had another notable game. He dropped the gloves with big Adam Klapka in the first period, getting the crowd fired up by flexing and pounding on the glass after scoring a takedown victory. He then assisted on Vlad Namestnikov\u2019s empty-net goal which sealed the victory with eight seconds left on the clock.<\/p>\n The Jets went two-for-eight on the power play and five-of-six on the penalty kill. Winnipeg has now killed off 32 of 34 penalties this year while also scoring a pair of shorthanded goals.<\/p>\n Arniel made two lineup changes: Defenceman Colin Miller and forward Nikita Chibrikov replaced Luke Schenn and Brad Lambert, who joined Parker Ford as healthy scratches.<\/p>\n A crowd of 13,967 took in the action. They seemed to enjoy what they saw, not only from the Jets but from the Toronto Blue Jays in Game 1 of the World Series. Highlights of various key plays were shown throughout the night on the scoreboard, and the final couple of innings of the game were broadcast once the final buzzer had sounded for plenty of fans who stuck around.<\/p>\n The Jets are back in action Sunday when they host the red-hot Utah Mammoth, who are off to a 6-2-0 start.<\/p>\n \n\t\tWinnipeg Free Press | Newsletter\n\t<\/p>\n \t\t\tThe Warm-Up<\/p>\n Winnipeg Jets Game Days<\/p>\n On Winnipeg Jets game days, hockey writers Mike McIntyre and Ken Wiebe send news, notes and quotes from the morning skate, as well as injury updates and lineup decisions. Arrives a few hours prior to puck drop.<\/p>\n \t\t\tSign up for The Warm-Up<\/a><\/p>\n \t\t mike.mcintyre@freepress.mb.ca<\/p>\n X and Bluesky: @mikemcintyrewpg<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t Mike McIntyre Mike McIntyre is a sports reporter whose primary role is covering the Winnipeg Jets. After graduating from the Creative Communications program at Red River College in 1995, he spent two years gaining experience at the Winnipeg Sun before joining the Free Press in 1997, where he served on the crime and justice beat until 2016. Read more about Mike<\/a>.<\/p>\n Every piece of reporting Mike produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print \u2014 part of the Free Press\u2018s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press\u2019s history and mandate<\/a>, and learn how our newsroom operates<\/a>.<\/p>\n
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\nJets RW Vilardi: 1G, 1A
\nJets C Scheifele: 2A<\/p>\n
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